For many years, I have needed my daily coffee intake -- I'm definitely one of those "don't talk to me until I've had my morning cup" people. But over the past few months, something has changed. Ever since catching a cold back at the beginning of the year, I've had a weird aversion to the thought of coffee. 

It has such a strong taste and can be so heavy that it has kind of stopped helping to lift me up in the morning and, instead, just brings me down.

Enter mate (pronounced: "mah-tay").

A traditional South-American beverage, mate is a high-caffeine tea made from yerba mate leaves and typically enjoyed through a long metal straw out of a hollowed out gourd.

 

According to South-American legend, goddesses of the Moon and Cloud came to visit Earth one day and were about to be attacked by a jaguar. After an old man saved them, the goddesses rewarded him with a new plant, from which he could create a "drink of friendship."

If that doesn't sound like something you want to drink, then I don't know what does.

These days, mate has become very popular around the world. In Berlin, you will find Club Mate everywhere -- a delightfully carbonated version of the drink. Many bars offer it as a mixer, much like a Red Bull Vodka. They hand you the bottle of Club Mate, you drink as much as you can in one sip, and they fill the bottle back up with vodka. It's no wonder why the nightlife in Berlin is so vibrant.

Here in America, the most common form of mate you will find will probably be Yerba Mate by the brand Guayaki, which has recently risen to popularity in grocery store chains, like Whole Foods.

Guayaki's version comes in a plethora of flavors, both carbonated and non-carbonated -- from mint, to something called "Bluephoria," which is apparently their blueberry concoction. 

I'm somewhat of a mate purist, so I always go for the carbonated "Classic Gold" flavor. It's the closest in taste to Club Mate, which I find to be far superior to all other brands, but is much cheaper than the German-import. 

Mate is light and refreshing, not too sweet, and has more caffeine than coffee. It also tastes very natural, making you feel better about drinking it than, say, a Red Bull or 5 Hour Energy, which is like consuming battery acid dipped in fake sugar.

If you haven't ever tried it, I recommend picking up a can or bottle the next time you're at the store. It makes for the perfect afternoon pick-me-up and, afterall, it's the "drink of friendship."